A glaring gap in supports for LGBTQ and two-spirit Indigenous people is putting them at risk of harm, commissioners heard at the third day of hearings for the federal inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in Iqaluit, in Canada’s east-Arctic.

The third and final panel of the week, focused on decolonization and a gendered Indigenous perspective, gave their testimony Wednesday afternoon. The panel included Jasmine Redfern and TJ Lightfoot, both of whom have extensive experience working with a youth sexual health network, and Jeffrey McNeil-Seymour, a two-spirit university professor, activist, and artist who teaches courses focusing on decolonizing social work.

Redfern and Lightfoot testified together to open the panel, speaking about the lack of visibility for the LGBTQ and two-spirit Indigenous community.

The term two-spirit is used by some Indigenous people to describe someone who has both a masculine and a feminine spirit.